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After spending a few days in NYC (I’ll review the Coney Island Cyclone at the end of this trip report), we headed up to Mystic, CT. I originally planned to go to SFNE yesterday (24th), but it was supposed to rain pretty much all day and I didn’t want to risk it (good thing too, b/c someone at the park said yesterday sucked!). After driving about an hour and twenty minutes we went from fields and farms to Beemers and Intamins, what a change!
We arrived at about 9:30 and hit the gates at 9:40, good old Six Flags had three only booths open so we had to wait about 15 minutes for tickets (Dunkin Donuts saved us $12 each!). After going through the metal detectors I headed for Superman: Ride of Steel.
After a momentary wait for the national anthem and stroller moms (…grrr…) I made my way into the Superheroes section and into the S:ROS line. After about fifteen minutes of admiring the gorgeous Intamin track while they tested trains (2 trains..go Six Flags!), I finally made my way into the station and waited for a tick. I sat in the second car for my first ride. After ascending the quick lift hill and admiring the scenery, I plunged into oblivion and smoke into the vortex of steel. Needless to say, I can see why this ride is rated #1 (is this for East Coast only?). The ride has perfect pacing, great airtime, and amazing visuals. This is what its all about, and its my #1 coaster of all time. I also really appreciate how they ran two trains and had all the misters running.
After this ride in the red train, I waited about thirty minutes for a second go around. This time I sat in the blue train, next to last car. This time the fun really began. As we left the station I heard it: RING RING! The guy next to me decides to answer his phone. As he chats I hear the ride ops panicking and then sure enough, we stop. After waiting about ten minutes and listening to all the po’d people complaining about the guy, who said he was "sorry", an attendee came by and took his phone and we were off again. Thanks for wasting EVERYONE’S time sir! Cell phones should be banned in the park! Anyway, great ride again. The trains feel about the same and I liked the back slightly better because of more airtime. The ride’s setting only enhances its greatness and the underground plunges add to it even more. On a side note, all rows were being filled and the trains seemed to have no trouble stopping. I was surprised as the temperature was in the upper eighties. This ride rocks! *****1/2 (yeah out of five, but it beat Volcano so I had to help it out a little!)
Next was NIGHTWING, a Huss flyaway. I’ll make this short and sweet: it took too doggoned long to load this thing and it wasn’t worth waiting twenty minutes. While the ride is pretty cool, it puts too much pressure of your back and neck and left me feeling a little dizzy, which is rare for me. ***
On to FLASHBACK, "le boomerang de Vekoma"! I enjoy boomerangs, and this was no exception. After a great five-minute line, I boarded the last car and had a great ride. I really loved the height of the last row and this one runs pretty smooth. I love how slow the lift on tower 2 is and the fact that it eliminates the awful jerk that SFMW’s Boomerang has. ****
The Vekoma AirJumper, TIME WARP, was next. This is a cool ride, but since the line was really short, they really could have put it on a longer cycle. I think we only flipped a handful of times. I sat in the "front" for a more open feeling. Overall, the ride was good but too short. *** ½
BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT was next and certainly not a Kumba or Hulk. WTF happened with this ride. It was bumpy, boring, and a total letdown. Okay it wasn’t that bad, but it just wasn’t that great! I rode the last row and front row and liked front better, but overall I was very disappointed in the ride. It seems really rattly and the elements are nondescript. The zero-g roll is really slow and the corkscrews bumped my head more than a usual B&M. I do like the ride’s colors and compact layout, and maybe S:ROS upped my standards, but the Dark Knight seemed a little weary today. ***1/2
Next was CHAOS, one of my favorite flats. I miss this ride at the Pavilion in Myrtle Beach. This one seemed a little jerky, but overall it was a good ride. I got the wild seat this time!! ***1/2
Finally I reached the pinnacle of my visit, THE MIND ERASER! Okay, maybe that was little bit of a stretch. Make that a big fat lie. After a too long thirty minute wait (I know, waste of time, but I wanted to give it a chance), I boarded the red train and waited for the girlie to close my restraint. I must add the half-finished lift hill ramp and the cherry picker under the hill give the ride a "quality" touch! J The usual SLC layout followed, hooray for the hang and bang. Mind Eraser seemed a lot rougher than Kong did. The train sounded like it was going to break or snap at some points. I agree with those who say the problems with these SLCS are the trains. The ride isn’t bumpy, the trains just make it jerky. ***
Next was THUNDERBOLT, a decent woodie with the park’s worst crew. This was a 45-minute wait because of only one train operation and because a girl puked all over the path and they had to clean it. After that the crew argued with a lady while the train sat in the station waiting for dispatch. I hate those Fastlane people who think they are better than everybody, yeah they paid but we had to wait. This crew was so bad, they were slow and seemed to not understand that people wanted to ride and leave, not sit and listen to them chat. The ride was good though, nice air, reminiscent of Phoenix. The trains seemed a little rough though. ***1/2
Unfortunately, that was my day. We had to get back for some stupid dinner. I had to skip SCREAM! (ridden S&S’s before, but this looked cool with its great ride program), Cyclone, and the water rides. I also skipped the Frisbee (did that before), the Inverter (did that too), and the Top Spin (yeah that too)!
MY WAITS FOR THE RIDES
S:ROS : 15 mins – 2nd car in red train, 30 mins – 2nd to last car in blue train
B:TDK: 15 mins – last car, 15 mins – first car
ME: 30 mins – 7th car I think
FB – Five minutes last car
TB – Too long, last car
Overall I was fairly happy with the park. I would have liked to explore it more, but that’s how it goes. The park has a good selection of rides and decent employees. The theming and gardens are also decent for Six Flags. I though this park was nicer than SFOG and SFMW (my most recent Six Flags). Overall the park gets ****!
PRO:
S:ROS
Good variety or rides (Frisbee, Combo Tower, Floorless, Megacoaster, Top Spin, rapids, etc.)
Decent crews (S:ROS and Batman)
Good Theming for Six Flags
The neat signs that say the ride name (SLC, or Flyaway), the date of manufacture, and other info.
CON:
Understaffed on a lot of rides
Slow loaders on several rides
Few ticket booths open
Bad Thunderbolt crew
SUGGESTIONS:
Open more ticket booths
Repaint Mind Eraser and hire Intamin to make new trains (yeah…)
Lengthen Time Warp’s ride cycle
Get more employees that are perky and just LOVE to load trains
Thanks the SFNE.com for some good info too, it helped, and I enjoyed the park!
CONEY ISLAND CYCLONE
While in New York, I knew I had to finally ride the Cyclone. I must say Coney Island is in need of some TLC though. Great classic woodie!! I rode front row and next to last (three bucks for a re-ride). I loved the great layout, surprise elements, and classic feel. This ride was designed so well and it shows. The ride is a classic and worth the trip to Coney Island. ****1/2
Cyclone is an okay woodie but very rough. It is a worth at least one ride though. Scream is very fun and worth multiple rides but I guess it wasn't worth it for you since you've ridden other S&S Towers.
Oh, and S:RoS was rated not #1 coaster 4 straight years not just on the east coast, nhot just in America, but in the hle world! I love that ride so much. I wish I could marry it. JK of course.:)
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Top 3
1-S:RoS @ SFNE
2-Boulder Dash
3-Yankee Cannonball
Cyclone is an okay woodie but very rough. It is a worth at least one ride though. Scream is very fun and worth multiple rides but I guess it wasn't worth it for you since you've ridden other S&S Towers.
Oh, and S:RoS was rated the #1 coaster 4 straight years not just on the east coast, not just in America, but in the whole world! I love that ride so much. I wish I could marry it. JK of course.:)
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Top 3
1-S:RoS @ SFNE
2-Boulder Dash
3-Yankee Cannonball
Cyclone is an okay woodie but very rough. It is a worth at least one ride though. Scream is very fun and worth multiple rides but I guess it wasn't worth it for you since you've ridden other S&S Towers.
Oh, and S:RoS was rated the #1 coaster 4 straight years not just on the east coast, not just in America, but in the whole world! I love that ride so much. I wish I could marry it. JK of course.:)
Edit: I am extremely sorry for the triple post but my computer was running slow and I pressed reply 3 times.
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Top 3
1-S:RoS @ SFNE
2-Boulder Dash
3-Yankee Cannonball
*** This post was edited by SFNE Dude 7/26/2003 7:07:12 PM ***
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Ramming your face into the bottom of a swimming pool is not very fun.
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Top 3
1-S:RoS @ SFNE
2-Boulder Dash
3-Yankee Cannonball
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